


Down to Sleep

by theskywasblue



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: Comfort, M/M, Sleep
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-10-08
Updated: 2010-10-08
Packaged: 2017-10-12 12:55:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/125043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theskywasblue/pseuds/theskywasblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kougaiji isn't the only one who has trouble sleeping.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Down to Sleep

**Author's Note:**

  * For [velvetina_wonka](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=velvetina_wonka).



"You never really sleep, do you?"

Kougaiji halts, mid-stride, muscles locking as he forces himself not to flinch at the unexpected sound. He takes one deep breath, lets it circulate through his whole body before he releases it, forcing the tension out as well before he turns around.

Dokugakuji stands in the open doorway of his bedroom and regards the prince with a gentle, curious, and slightly uncertain expression. He's wearing only sleeping pants, and Kougaiji notes with some pride that after only two weeks there is already a change, not only in the way the man holds himself, but in his physical frame - he is beginning to fill out along his sharply-defined ribs and his skin has a healthier pinkness to it, not the sallow colour that made all the small scars on his body stand out so harshly. He's clean, his eyes are brighter, and he even manages the smallest of smiles when Kougaiji meets his eyes.   
Dokugakuji is still very much uncertain of his place and purpose, but Kougaiji is beginning to see flashes of personality through the wall fashioned around him - something cheerful, something caring and warm, if slightly damaged.

Kougaiji wants to push his fingers though the gaps in that brickwork and find the real Dokugakuji on the other side. The desire is so strong that it is honestly a little bit terrifying.

"Every night," Dokugakuji continues, "I hear you walking up and down the hall for hours. It's gotta be exhausting."

"Doesn't the fact that you're hearing it mean you're not sleeping either?"

Dokugakuji looks down at his feet, the fall of his hair hiding his expression, but Kougaiji thinks it might be shy, with a hint of a blush. He has a very expressive face, and eyes even more so. "We're not talking about me."

"You're avoiding the question."

"You avoided it first."

A small bark of laughter escapes the prince, surprising him as much as - if not more than - Dokugakuji. "I think you're going to make a very challenging sparring partner once Yaone pronounces you fit for duty."

Dokugakuji shrugs, "Neither one of us is going to be fit for much of anything if we don't sleep."

Which is fair enough, Kougaiji thinks - except that Houtou Castle itself isn't exactly conducive to restfulness, and Kougaiji's state of mind is even less so. Nii has offered him "sleeping pills" and Yaone has suggested several herbal teas, but the fear of being put so deeply to sleep by them that he _cannot_ wake is more terrible than the prospect of going without sleep.

"You should worry about yourself," Kougaiji says finally, meaning it - because it's so very obvious that Dokugakuji has done nothing of the sort for a very, very long time; and perhaps giving him the responsibility of being Kougaiji's bodyguard has been the wrong one from the very beginning.

"I'm not any good at that," Dokugakuji confirms, with a small laugh that is nothing but self-effacing. "But then - I'm not really that good at worrying about other people either."

"You seem to be doing a fine enough job right now."

Dokugakuji is quiet for a long moment, and then he says, "I could sing you a lullaby."

The strange, twisting sensation in the pit of Kougaiji's stomach is entirely new, entirely unfamiliar, and he struggles to ignore it even as he asks - with what he thinks is far too much hopeful inflection, "Could you?"

"No," Dokugakuji looks away quickly, his face bright, vibrant red in the dim light. "I have a horrible singing voice. But maybe you could..." He takes a careful step back, still not looking up - his toes, apparently, are fascinating. "Come in, and lay down."

"With you?"

"Or not," Dokugakuji starts to close the door, hasty and embarrassed, until Kougaiji stops him; hand around the doorknob, forearm flat against the wood.

"You wouldn't mind?" Kougaiji doesn't know why he's asking; he knows it's wildly inappropriate for him to even share the same room as Dokugakuji, not to mention the same bed, even in a platonic sense - but the hall is empty, their voices are soft, and Kougaiji will guard the knowledge of this jealously, like an ancient secret.

"I don't take up much room," Dokugakuji answers. His breath is a whisper across Kougaiji's forehead, and the prince thinks that really wasn't the answer he was looking for, but it's good enough.

He is suddenly very, very tired.

-End-


End file.
